Energy stocks rise as crude prices jump
TotalEnergies hits alltime high
Italy hikes deficit targets as economic growth weakens
STOXX 600 off 0.2

Sept 28 Reuters European shares edged lower for a sixth straight day on Thursday in choppy trading, with gains in energy stocks limiting losses, while investors awaited inflation data from Germany, the euro zone39;s biggest economy.

The panEuropean STOXX 600 index reversed early gains and slipped 0.2 by 0809 GMT, while Germany39;s DAX eased 0.2.

Investor focus turned to consumer price index CPI data from Germany due at 1200 GMT, ahead of the euro zone inflation numbers on Friday.

Expectations are for headline CPI in Germany to slow from 6.4 to 4.5, which, in turn, is likely to translate into a similarly sharp slowdown in tomorrow39;s EU flash CPI numbers, said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets.

Today39;s German flash CPI for September could well reinforce this feeling that perhaps the ECB could have exercised a little more patience.

Energy shares limited losses on the STOXX 600 and were last up 0.9 as crude prices jumped after a drop in U.S. crude stocks added to worries over tight global supplies from OPEC output cuts.

French energy company TotalEnergies hit a record high, trading 1.5 higher after finalising a sale to Petronas.

Ryanair fell 2.4 after the European airline announced a number of cuts to its winter schedule due to the Boeing delivery delays, but added that its fullyear traffic…